Pictures of My Week Volume 10

Here are a few pictures from my week.

Beautiful flowers from a co-worker's yard.  They are just absolutely gorgeous and I'm so thankful she gave them to me.  I have been enjoying them on my desk at work all week.

Here's a photo from the other side of the vase.  I love all the colors.  Her yard must be gorgeous!

Lucy loves sitting up on the back of this chair.  I think it's because she can see everything going on from here.

I think Lucy needs a grooming.  I can't believe how long her toe nails are, plus her hair is starting to cover her eyes.

That's all for this week.   Hubby and I are hoping to take a day trip tomorrow.  We'll see if that works out or not.  Hope you have a great weekend.

Thankful Thursday

Things I am thankful for today (in no particular order):

**Blogging Friends such as Rebecca Jo from Knit by God's Hand who hosts Thankful Thursday every week.  She is always such an encouragement to me.  She makes me laugh and she makes me think and she's just fun to know.  I highly recommend, if you don't know her, to go visit and get to know her.  Click here.

**Mom and Dad are both doing better this week.  Mom actually went and ate in the dining hall.  She hasn't felt like doing that in weeks.  Thank you Jesus.

**My husband who right at this minute is picking me up something to eat for breakfast!  Thank you hubby!!

**Speaking of breakfast, I'm thankful for Taco Bell's California Crunchwrap!  So very good!

**I think hubby and I have made up our mind.  We are going to do some fix-up on the house we are in and just stay where we are.  We love it there, but have been considering getting a condo because of the yard work we neither really want to do and some of it we really can't do.  So, we are planning to hire a lawn service and fix-up our house and retire here.  Yay!  Maybe that will change someday in the future, but for now that is our decision.  Standby for future pictures of the fix-ups.  I'm so thankful for finally deciding.

**I'm thankful for the time I've been taking each morning to read the word and pray.  God is so good!

**Beautiful blue skies this morning.  Looks like its going to be a pretty day. 

So that's some things I'm thankful for this morning.  What about you?  What are you thankful for.  You can tell me in the comments or better yet, why not write your own post and link up with Thankful Thursday here.

Pictures of My Week Volume 9

Here are a few pictures from my week.  I hope you enjoy them.

Here's another picture from the wedding we attended on Saturday.  The bride and her father.

This is a bat that was on the sidewalk just outside my work.  Kinda creepy.  We think it was sick because it was out during the day.  In fact, someone said it died the next day.  No, I really wasn't that close to it, I used the zoom.

This is the new Bible study we will be starting in September.

Lucy this morning before work.

Lucy in one of her new dresses.  A friend from church made this for her.  She wasn't sure she liked it.

This is another one our friend made.  She didn't seem to mind this one too bad.  Isn't she adorable?

Well, there you have it.  Just a little bit of my week in pictures.  If you want to see some more, you can check out my Instagram in the side bar.

Thankful Thursday

Things I am thankful for this week in no particular order:

**  a pastor who can explain the scriptures so I can understand. Last night in Bible study, we were looking at a scripture I have never understood and he made it so simple in his explanation that for the first time, I really get it. Love a break through like that. Oh and that pastor just happens to be my husband. I love that too. 

**  to live in a country where I can go to the church I choose and praise my God on this blog without fear of repercussion. (I hope we will always be free to)

**  beautiful weather yesterday. It was one of those blue skies, white clouds, cooler temperatures, and no humidity kind of days. 

Taken Wednesday from the back porch of where I work.

**  to have woke up early this morning to another beautiful day.

So what are you thankful for today.  Why not make a post and link up here with Rebecca Jo at Knit by God's Hand.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Is your home air conditioned?  Yes, it is. If it's not air conditioned, is that by choice? Did you grow up with air conditioning? No, I did not. If not how did you cope with the heat? Sometimes we would have a window fan and almost always we had an attic fan which did a decent job of pulling hot air in the windows. I'd also keep flipping my pillow over to get the "cool" side. Share about a time or place you remember as being too hot-the temperature kind of hot, lest anyone be confused. I've been to Disney World in August and trust me, that is too hot!  But it's Disney World and its worth it!

2. What's something in your life right now that falls under the heading 'up in the air'?

My mom and dad's health. 

3. Your favorite light and airy dessert?

Cotton candy

4. When did you last feel like you were 'floating on air'?

Probably when I was floating in a swimming pool. I know that's not what you mean by this question, but it's the best I can think of right now.  :)

5. Airport, airmail, airtight, airhead...which have you most recently encountered? Explain.

Airhead maybe.  Sometimes I feel like a real airhead. 

6.  Have you ever been to the Alps? No, I haven't  If so where did you go? If not, is this a destination on your must-see list? No, not really. Although I probably wouldn't turn down a free trip.  If you were headed that direction this summer, which of the following would be your preferred activity...a gentle walk, a serious walk, a bike ride, a boat ride around one of the lakes, or summer snow skiing?
A boat ride. 
7. What is one saying or phrase that was considered 'cool' when you were growing up?

Well for one...we used the word "cool" all the time. Everything was cool. 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Thanks Joyce. This has been a real cool Hodgepodge!

My Weekend

Items from my weekend.

**  Friday evening after work, Charlie and Kerri came to mow visit and brought their new puppy.  Kerri mowed the grass and we ordered in pizza (haven't done that in a long time).  We played with the puppy and watched Oscar and Lucy playing together.

Oscar - Isn't he adorable?

** Saturday we went to my husband's cousin's daughter's wedding.  Did you get that?  haha  It was a beautiful wedding and she was a beautiful bride.  If you follow me on FB or Twitter or Instagram, you may have already seen some pictures from the wedding. 

Sweet bride and groom - not the greatest picture, but not too bad (from my iPhone)

**Sunday we had 2 really great church services and met the family for lunch.  I love being with family.  Hubby didn't know I took the below picture of him while he was preaching on Nehemiah on Sunday morning.  Again, it's not the greatest picture.  It was taken from the back of the church from my iPhone.

Hubby does not like to stand in the pulpit.  He prefers to be down with the people.

So, that was my weekend in a nutshell.  What did you do this weekend? 

Pictures of My Week Volume 8

It's Friday and time for some pictures I've taken this week.  Obviously, I haven't taken but just a few.  Hope you enjoy.

Geese outside the restaurant where we had lunch last Saturday.

And this is where we ate, Don Pablos.  Yummy!

Little Lucy relaxing by mommy in the chair.

Time for a close-up Miss Lucy

,

This is our Chrysler Town and Country leaving our house for the last time, after 11 years and over 130,000 miles that we put on it.  We sure do have a lot of wonderful memories that were made in this van.  I drove and was chaperone to both of my girls class trips.  One to Washington DC and one to Michigan. Plus tons of trips to North Carolina and Florida. Plus just our regular trips to school, church, work, life.  We're going to miss you.  You've been a faithful old van.  Hope the van we have now will bring us many memories and good times too.

Beautiful skies this morning when leaving for work.

How was your week and do you have any pictures you'd like to share?  If there's any interest, I could probably set this up as a weekly link-up on Fridays.  Let me know if you are interested.

Thankful Thursday

Click the button above if you'd like to join in with Thankful Thursday with Rebecca at Knit by God's Hand.

Now here's some things I'm thankful for today, in no particular order.

**  Beautiful blue skies and no rain (at least for now)
**  Kerri's coming to mow tomorrow (so I don't have to this week)
**  Mom is doing a little better this week. Last week the Hospice nurse said she believed mom was in the beginning stages of the end.  This week she is better.  She even went and got her hair done on Tuesday.  Last week she barely even got out of bed.
**  I'm thankful that Jesus loves me and cares about me always and forgives me every time I ask and lets me start over brand new with a clean slate.

So, what are you thankful for today?  Why not make a list and join up with Knit by God's Hand.  It's an excellent way to be deliberately thankful.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's Wednesday and time for the Hodgepodge.  Just click the button on the left to join up with our host.


1.July 15th is National Give Something Away Day. What can you give away? Will you?
Some clothes I've sorted through and no longer want.  And yes, they are ready to go, I just need to take them to a drop-off  donation box. Oh and actually we are giving away something today.  Our old van is being donated to Good Will this morning.  There should be a tow truck there in a little over an hour.

2. Do you have a mantra? Please share with the class if you feel comfortable doing so.
Not really, unless you count, "this too shall pass."

3. Who does the grocery shopping in your house? How many times a week do you shop? Do you make a list or pray for inspiration in the produce aisle?
Hubby and I do it together.  We just tried a new thing our grocery has started.  I posted about it here at the bottom of this post last week. I'm not sure how much grocery shopping we'll be doing now.

4. Is there a TV show you're embarrassed to say you watch? You're going to tell us what it is, right?
Nope, not that I can think of.

5. A recent article listed fifteen words we should eliminate from our (written) vocabulary in order to sound smarter-

that, went, honestly, absolutely, very, really, amazing, always, never, literally, just, maybe, stuff, things, and irregardless

Of the fifteen, which word is your most overused?
Maybe amazing.  However, I love the word (especially in relation to God) and I don't intend to quit using it.

6. So apparently dying your hair gray (in your youth!) is a thing right now. It's called 'The Granny Hair' trend. Your thoughts?
This is a new one to me.  But why shouldn't they do it if they want, they dye their hair every other color in the book!

7. A while back Buzz Feed asked members to share the most beautiful sentence they've read in a piece of literature. A hard thing to narrow down, at least for me, but let's try. What's one of the most beautiful sentences you've ever read in a piece of literature?
Can't think of anything right now.  How about from the Bible "Jesus wept."  It's beautiful to me that he loved and cared so much that He actually wept at someone's sorrow.

8. Insert your own random thought here.
The weather sure has been strange this summer.  We've not had that many hot days, but we sure have had a lot of rain.  I don't want to complain, because I know they need rain in so many places.  So, I'll just leave it as I started it.  The weather sure has been strange this summer.

Pictures of My Week Volume 7

Here are some pictures from my week. Hope you enjoy.

As we were out driving last weekend, we ran across this painting.  I thought it was so cool.  Sorry about the Mickey ears in the middle of the picture, but we were at a stop light and I took it through the window.  We definitely need to go back so we can get out and really look at this.  So cool!!

Well, now I can truly say my hubby has driven me looney!  haha

Here's a picture from the front of Bears Mill.  It really is a neat place.  They display local artists' works and they have tours of the grinding.  I love going there.

Here's a picture of the stream that runs underneath to run the mill.

Finally we had some blue skies yesterday afternoon.  We were picking up groceries from Kroger when I took this. 

Our local Kroger has started a new thing.  You can order your groceries online and then set a time for pick-up and they will bring them out to your car.  So, Wednesday we went on line and placed the order.  We stopped after work on Thursday and they brought them to the car and we paid them there.  Took at the most, maybe, 15 minutes.  So totally love this new process.  I believe we'll be doing groceries this way most of the time now.

Well, that's about all for now.  Have a great weekend everyone!!

Thankful Thursday

Things I am thankful for this week:

*  Doing a couple of day trips with hubby last Friday and Saturday.  I love time alone with him our in our van traveling back roads and seeing what we can find.

We stopped at a little hole in the wall restaurant out in the middle of nowhere called and they had these wonderful hamburgers.  Under that hamburger is a full plate of fries.  No way could I eat it all.  But what I did eat was good.

Went to Cowan Lake and relaxed.  The weather was perfect.  Not too hot and not too cold and no mugginess at all.  So relaxing

*  Watching our town's fireworks Friday night.  Ours are always on the 3rd.  It started as just hubby and me and then my sister and her husband showed up and then Carolyn and Carina showed up.  Fun times.

Hubby and I sitting on the back of the van waiting for the fireworks.

Hubby and I stopped at Bears Mill on Saturday while out and I bought some Blackberry Preserves.  Delicious!

So what are you thankful for?

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. When did you last 'swim against the tide'? Explain.
Wow!  The first question and I can't think of a thing to write. I hope the rest are a little easier.  lol

2. What's the last self-help or self-improvement book you read?
I really don't usually read self-help or self-improvement books.  However I'm reading Patsy Clairmont's, "Catching Fireflies" and it is really good and I'm learning some things.  Thinking about light in a whole different way.  To me the Bible is one of the best self-help or self-improvement books around.  It teaches us how to come to Christ and how to live for Him.

3. "Tolerance is a tremendous virtue, but the immediate neighbors of tolerance are apathy and weakness." (Sir James Goldsmith)

Agree or disagree? Discuss. With civility please, because I think we have a good thing going in our very diverse (in geography, age, religion, political persuasion, ethnicity, marital status, upbringing, and cooking abilities) neighborhood here on This Side of the Pond.
I think tolerance can be good as long as it doesn't go all one direction.  In other words, I believe I need to be tolerant of others, but I believe they should also be tolerant of me.  Just because your tolerant though, doesn't mean you have to agree with them or support what they are doing or believe in, you just need to be kind to them.

4. What is one of your most vivid memories of the kitchen from your childhood?
I remember when we were younger all of us kids would have to clean up the kitchen after dinner.  We'd put a record on the hifi and turn it up loud and one would scrape the dishes and one would wash and one would dry.  And the washer and dryer would race to see who would finish first.  My sister usually washed and I would dry.  The washer was also responsible for washing the table and countertops.  My sister would always take glasses of clean water and pour over the dishes in the draing so it would take us longer to dry them.  She was so mean!  haha  Any way, it made the chore go faster and we had fun at the same time.

5. How did/do your own children's summers compare with your summers as a child? If you're not a parent, answer as it relates to what you've observed about the current generation of children vs. your own childhood.
They were probably pretty similar.  They watched TV and played outside and in their rooms, just like we did.  The big difference is my mom didn't work in the summer and I do, so I didn't get to be with them during the day.  My husband had a more flexible schedule and he would work at home so they could be home as much as possible and not at a sitters.

6. Tell us what body of water you would most like to be on or near today, and why?
The Atlantic Ocean.  Because I love the ocean and the beach.

Sunrise

Sunset

7. Share a favorite song about water, or a favorite song with the word water in it's title, or a favorite song to listen to as you sit beside the water.
One of the first tunes that popped into my head is "Sittin on the Dock of the Bay"



8. Insert your own random thought here.
Okay Joyce, now you have me thinking about the beach and I'm going to have trouble getting anything else done today!  lol  Lord willing, Hubby and I'll be spending almost 4 weeks at the ocean in November this year.

Have a great day everyone and thanks for visiting!

God Gives Grace

I shared this video On July 7, 2011 and it's still true today. God Gives Grace! So be encouraged my friend!